


are we out of the woods yet

by senroh



Category: Naruto
Genre: Alternate Universe - Gods & Goddesses, Clan Politics, Developing Relationship, M/M, MadaTobi Week 2018, Marriage Hunt, To the Victor Go the Spoils
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-08-03
Updated: 2018-08-10
Packaged: 2019-06-21 10:50:25
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,407
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15556089
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/senroh/pseuds/senroh
Summary: Despairing of Hashirama's heartbreak at another peace treaty sent back unopened, Tobirama sets forth to accomplish his brother's will.Or the MadaTobi marriage-hunt AU I promised to write.





	1. promise me you'll catch me

**Author's Note:**

  * For [blackkat](https://archiveofourown.org/users/blackkat/gifts).
  * Inspired by [hunt you down (eat you alive)](https://archiveofourown.org/works/14795324) by [blackkat](https://archiveofourown.org/users/blackkat/pseuds/blackkat). 



The sound of his brother’s sobs echo in his ears as Tobirama turns in for the night, a heavy weight settling over his shoulders and causing his heart to sink. He had just finished a space-time technique that would allow him to summon himself inside an enemy’s guard, or anywhere really as long as there was a seal in place for him to be transported to, but he couldn’t even bring himself to tell Hashirama anymore. 

He doubts his brother would rejoice that Tobirama has another weapon to use against the Uchiha clan (for Tobirama had thought of this technique mainly to be able to work around the sharingan) when he is mourning another attempt at a peace treaty sent back unopened. 

He tries to sleep, but his thoughts refuse to allow him rest. Madara has previously stated that his clan wouldn’t agree to enter any sort of alliance without guarantees, and there was no promise that Hashirama had or could give that his elders would believe. Tobirama’s mind churns to find any solution to the problem, each one discarded as more foolhardy than the last. There was no way to guarantee to both clans that they could have peace Tobirama despaired. This was not a new jutsu to figure out, or a new seal to puzzle through, or even an odd new ability that a clan child is asking him to help figure out…

Like lightning streaking across a gloomy sky, it occurrs to Tobirama that a marriage alliance was likely to be the most effective solution, though not just any kind of marriage would work. There were records of potential marriage alliances between enemy clans going badly, one of them would be assassinated, kill themselves, or defect, and it wasn’t always the enemy clan that were the culprits, so they needed a way to finalize it that both clans would respect, without giving them the opportunity to influence either party. 

The obvious solution was sticking out like a cat in the midst of mice, but Tobirama was still hesitant. It would have to be someone closely related to the clan head, or neither clan would accept it as a viable solution to an end of hostilities. Hashirama was obviously out, he was already married, and it couldn’t be both clan heads anyway. Izuna was also out, mostly because of his endless fount of suspicion, he would never accept.

Tobirama grimaced in resignation. He would need to do some research, and observe the Uchiha closely through his sensing just to make sure, but if it all turned out… He would be proposing a marriage hunt to Uchiha Madara within the next fortnight. 

—

Observing the Uchiha clan more closely was an interesting endeavor. He hadn’t bothered to watch their compound beyond watching for people leaving, especially if they were coming toward the direction of the Senju compound, but now that he observed them more closely in their homes, Tobirama could begin to pick out patterns in their movements, spikes of their chakra and emotions, Like this he got a general sense of how their compound was laid out, where the training grounds were, the homes, the paths, gardens, where the children played, where the elders met, and most importantly for his designs, where Madara and Izuna lived and spent most of their time when not training or on missions. 

It seemed that Madara had no romantic or sexual partners of any kind, though if what he was picking up was right, then Izuna flirted with every one that was of the appropriate age and significantly strong. 

But Tobirama didn’t want to assume things too quickly, so he continued to observe the Uchiha, feeling his frustrations with his clan elders whenever they met together, his love, exasperated fondness, and sometimes aggravation with his brother, the calm concentration that fell over him when he was sitting alone, and Tobirama found himself thinking that perhaps joining himself to the elder Uchiha brother might not be so bad, his chakra was soothing if nothing else.

Of course Tobirama had many other things to do with his day than keep track of the Uchiha clan head, though that was always on the peripheral of his mind. He spent his days training with his own clansmen, teaching and playing with the Senju children whenever he had time to spare for them, researching and creating, running his experiments, and subtly preparing for his potential marriage by backing all his notes up and going through all of his back log of uncompleted projects.

Eventually the time comes when Tobirama has delayed as much as he feels he can, he waits until Madara’s next solitary departure from his compound and goes to meet him.

The shadows are deep with only the moon and stars to light the way, but Tobirama has never relied on his eyes alone, and the familiar ebb and flow of nature’s energy guides him where his eyes would fail, all the way to edge of the river where Madara and Hashirama once spent time dreaming of the future. Madara is there already, standing at the waters edge, his chakra first a thing of contemplation, then wariness as Tobirama draws nearer until he is at the edge of the tree line, alert and watchful. 

Tobirama observes Madara for a moment as his chakra builds with a certain intent, then steps into moonlight before it can reach a tipping point. 

Madara’s gaze immediately snaps to him, his white hair standing out like a beacon against the darkness of the night. The Uchiha goes to open his mouth, eyes narrowed with suspicion, but Tobirama beats him by a hair. 

“Uchiha, marry me.” He states it bluntly without shame, as if simply stating that their clans have been enemies for many years, though this is the farthest statement from that that he can fathom.

He is glad that there is certainly no one in hearing range when the choked shrieking noise Madara answers with echoes over the sounds of the forest nightlife. 

“YOU CAN’T JUST- YOU’RE NOT- THAT’S! I WON’T FALL FOR THIS SENJU! WHATEVER YOU’RE PLANNING-” 

Madara’s chakra swells with so many emotions that Tobirama can’t quite pick them apart, but rather than allowing him to continue with his irrational tirade, he cuts him off with a snort, and before he can swell up any more, lays out his argument. 

“You’ve told Anija that he could not offer any guarantee that your clan would believe, but I am not my brother. If you marry me, then your clan will have all the guarantees it should want for peace between our clans.” 

Madara sneers, “You would have me become a Senju and presume that my clan will take as a declaration of peace?” he nearly snarls.

“That would be ineffective.” Tobirama says, “The only way your clan will accept peace with mine is if you are at it’s head, leading it there.”

An incredulous bark of laughter follows, clear indication that Madara knew what he was getting at. “So you would throw yourself on my mercy?” He sneers, “Don’t be a fool, Senju. Marriage contracts have never worked out between enemy clans.”

“Throw myself?” Tobirama scoffs at the mere idea of playing the role of some fluttering maiden, “Don’t think yourself so amazing Uchiha, you’ll have to catch me first.” 

Dead silence. Tobirama isn’t surprised that Madara’s earlier racket scared the wildlife into quiet, but uneasiness settles viscerally into his bones as the silence lingers. He represses the urge to shift his weight, refusing to allow any sign of his nervousness to show outwardly. 

“A hunt.” Madara states flatly, face impassive in a way Tobirama has never witnessed before even as he can feel fury and despair warring with the beginnings of hope in his chakra. “The last time an Uchiha tried to hunt a Senju he was spurned with such disdain that the entire clan was in uproar.”

Tobirama grimaced at the reminder, “The Senju have been called a clan of a thousand skills, this is true of our nature as well. Not a single one of us can be appeased the same way as another… and Mebuki’s was very much the opposite of what any Uchiha has shown of themselves, even as far what we have recorded of your marriage hunts.” 

“Oh? And you claim that you are? Tell me, what do the Senju think the Uchiha marriage hunt practices are?” Madara asked, incensed curiosity in his chakra and danger in his tone and glittering in his eyes.

Tobirama eyed him warily for a moment before answering, “The Uchiha are descended from the god of the sun, war, and sacrifice. From what we have gathered, your marriage hunts have always ended with combat.” 

“Hm,” Madara’s chakra had quieted, but Tobirama wasn’t sure what the contemplative edge it now had meant. “And you’ll be satisfied with that?”

“As I said, you’ll have to catch me first.” Tobirama said evenly, head held high.

Nodding abruptly, Madara stepped forward as if to begin right then, “Shall we then?”

Tobirama shook his head, and ignoring the frustration building in Madara, said, “Will your clan accept you just suddenly bringing someone back from a hunt with no warning? If we want this to work out it has to be as official as we can make it in the eyes of both of our clans without giving them the chance to object.”

Irritated now, Madara crosses his arms over his chest impatiently “What would you suggest then, Senju? The sooner our clans stop fighting the better.” 

“Start it at the next skirmish in the old ways.” Tobirama replies, and this is a gamble, the old ways would have one call on both of their divine ancestors to witness the hunt as they have previously agreed on it and make clear the victor, and not many were comfortable with the thought of being bound by the laws of deity. 

Madara watches him shrewdly for a time before breaking the new silence, “You wouldn’t be able to back out of that Senju, are you certain that’s what you want?” 

Mutely Tobirama nodded, having thought long on this and how best to make sure it would work. 

“Then I suppose we will have to work out everything our hunt will entail now so that we are agreed on the terms of the winner.” Madara sighs, but Tobirama can feel the hope and determination unfurling within him as he crosses the river so they can both rest on the same bank to speak further. “What are your aspects exactly?”

—

The moment Tobirama felt a Senju squad being approached by a squad of Uchiha, with one of them going back toward the compound to presumably alert them they had found them (they must have had a sensor with them) he alerted Hashirama and his own clan, and they departed to the battlefield with all haste. As it was closer to the Uchiha compound and it seems that they had already been planning an attack today, it was no surprise that they arrived at the same time as the Uchiha reinforcements despite Tobirama’s forewarning.

A quick sweep of the battlefield showed that no one was too badly injured as of yet, but that could change at anytime.

When Tobirama looked back toward the incoming Uchiha, Madara was already looking at him. 

A sweep of Madara’s intent caused the Uchiha and Senju already fighting to cease and fall back to their separate lines. Tension built in already heavy air, the clans eying each other across the field waiting for the moment of battle to recommence. Hashirama opened his mouth ready to attempt a peaceful end to this conflict, but before he could Madara flung out a hand as if to hold back his own forces.

He stepped forward in the watchful silence and spoke in a loud formal voice, “In accordance with the prearranged terms agreed upon by both willing participants, I Madara call upon the divine ancestors of the Uchiha and Senju clans to witness this hunt!”

A moment passed as most everyone present gaped aghast at the Uchiha clan head. Hashirama, confusion clear on his face began to speak, “Madara, what-?”

The air stilled as if in the aftermath of the tolling of a great bell, the light of the sun strengthened until the shadows fled away, and for a moment it seemed that time itself stood still before everything returned as it was. 

If that wasn’t a sign of divine acceptance Tobirama doesn’t know what is.

Stepping forward, to the increasing shock of everyone who didn’t know this was going to happen, Tobirama nodded to Madara and spoke his own lines, “Then let us begin.”

The next moment he was tearing away from the battlefield, leaving behind the shouts and futile objections of both of their kin with Madara hot on his heels.

—

Hashirama lurched after his brother and friend but was halted by an unexpected arm at his chest, Touka was there when he turned, glaring him down. “Don’t interfere with a Hunt, idiot.” She hissed at him.

“But-! Tobirama!” he whined beseechingly to his cousin.

She raised an unimpressed brow at him and he wilted. 

Ignoring his theatrics, Touka turned to the Uchiha and called across the field, “I guess this means we can’t fight until their all done and settled.” She smirked at the furious expression on Izuna’s face, “Don’t look so put out little Uchiha!” she crowed, “Soon we’ll practically be in-laws!”

Hashirama perked up as if rainbows and doves were suddenly sprouting from her mouth, but Izuna’s shrieking squawk was reward enough for the inconvenience of Hashirama’s joy.


	2. I was born to run, I was born for this

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Hunt

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> so... I totally wasn't going to write out the Hunt because I was going for more of a story about relationship building and the clans coming together, but then someone asked me to write it so... here it is. 
> 
> This is unedited, so if you spot any glaring mistakes, please let me know!
> 
> also, thank you to everyone who commented, you really helped keep me motivated to finish writing this chapter!

Time passed with the same careless abandon of river rapids, Madara’s focus was solely fixed on the white topped figure before him, only instinct allowing him to dodge around trap flung weapons and spots of chakra he is sure are seals of some sort. The Senju is fast, he’ll give him that, fast and wily, it’s taking a great deal of concentration just to keep up, let alone catch him. The rest of his mind is taken up with watching where he is going and trying to come up with a plan to corner the man.

They’re headed east in a fairly straight course, and for a moment Madara thinks of what might be ahead that he could use to his advantage, then curses when he realizes that they are headed straight for the sea. Pumping slightly more chakra into his legs, he flings a kunai ahead, and Tobirama dodges to the left and continues east, but not without tossing a smirk over his shoulder.

Growling under his breath, Madara steps up his pace. He either needs to end this before they reach the ocean, or redirect their course. Prepping an explosive tag, Madara waits until it’s hot before throwing forward, Tobirama dodges again, but has to jump back at the explosion. Madara’s fingers feel the cloth of Tobirama’s sleeve before the finicky feline of a man is suddenly running north.

Madara doesn’t dare let him get any farther ahead than he possibly can, still dodging around strips of seals, and making sure that Tobirama won’t be able to turn east again. Running some rough calculations in his head, dread sinks into his gut as he realizes that where they’re headed isn’t much better than the ocean. A senbon scores a line across his cheek, and he focuses more intently, cursing himself for wavering just in time to see Tobirama split into three.

The split second it takes the sharingan to catalog the truly ridiculous amount of chakra these clones take, and the fact that they are actually physical clones (though he can’t discern any element creating them), is enough for the trio to split, one going east, one turning northwest, and the last putting on a burst of speed that leaves Madara in the dust.

Madara lunges for the one going east, no matter what the dread in his stomach says, the infinite source of water that the ocean provides would still be worse than the scorching springs of Hotwater country. Roughly ten minutes of racing after the eastbound Senju at his fastest pace, Madara manages a tackle that almost misses because the squirrelly albino nearly ducks around him, but he manages to drag him down into a pin.

Then he disappears in a poof of smoke with one last smug smirk, and Madara nearly shrieks with thwarted rage.

But in this every second counts, so he scrambles to his feet and tears off after the one that had continued north.

The number of traps he encounters is infuriating. Just for the fact that that tricky snowflake had the time to set them up even as they slow him down in order to buy Tobirama more time to get away, and more time to set up even more traps.

But this must be the correct direction if he’s running into all these traps.

Six traps later, the last with a particularly creative trick with wire, adhesive, and an explosive note that was more fire than explosion, and the trail goes cold.

Madara takes a deep breath, frustration burning in his throat, and turns his mind to his senses.

He doesn’t have the range that Tobirama reportedly does (though he’s skeptical of that report, from what he knows of the man both from their rare meetings and Izuna’s accounts [loud ranting and complaints] either the report is greatly exaggerated or it’s hilariously downplayed) but he can sense far enough to feel the Senju’s chilly water chakra getting farther away both to the north toward Hotwater, and a bit more west toward the land of Rice Fields.

A moment of deliberation where he debates which to go after while running in both of their general directions, and he speeds off toward the one heading for Hotwater. He’ll catch up to that one and try to coral him toward the one in the Rice Fields, and if he can’t swing that, then hopefully he’s going after the right one this time, but if he isn’t he’ll just keep going.

Madara grimaces at the thought, this was definitely testing his speed and endurance to exhausting degrees, so it better be worth it.

—

Amid the towering greenery of the forests of Fire country, on a thin woodland trail, an old man travels with his young grandson. They settle off the side of the trail for a break, unpacking some scant travel rations prepared in advance to have for dinner before they lay down to rest for the night, and then a sound alerts them.

It is faint at first, the distant rustling of tree leaves and murmur of voices, but as it draws nearer the sounds grow louder. Accompanying the rustling of brush is the almost even thump of something repeatedly slamming into the thick round wood of the trees, and what was once the faint murmur of voices, a voice rather, becomes the howling and cursing of a raging phantom.

The sounds grow louder until the pair can almost imagine that the source is right beside them, and then begins to gradually fade away.

The young boy looks at his grandfather, awe and fright warring in his eyes. “What could that have been grandfather?”

The old man strokes his beard, white with age, and smiles, “I’m sure it was just a mischievous forest spirit. Nothing to worry about as long as we don’t try to follow it!” he exclaims jovially.

The boy sends his older companion a doubtful look, “It sounded like farmer Tarou when he found rats in his stores.”

The old man laughs and tells him to eat his lunch so they can be on their way again soon.

—

Long hours filled with heinous traps (where did he even get those!? And sea urchins!? WHY?!!!!) and several near misdirections, and Madara finally catches sight of his quarry at the border of Hotwater and Fire. The Senju is still running, his pace even and faster than anyone else he’s ever had to pursue, and he would truly be very impressed if he wasn’t the one having to chase after him to catch him, so with a snarling growl (he knows better than to yell and give himself away despite what some if his clan members might choose to believe, thankyouverymuch [though it probably doesn’t make a difference with a sensor as proficient as Tobirama is rumored to be]) he pushes chakra into his legs and speeds up as much as he can, wanting this over already.

Just before he can catch the infernal wretch he makes another left turn, and a veritable tsunami of steaming blue tinged water crashes over Madara’s head.

With an unholy shriek of rage Madara continues pursuit of his aggravating challenger with all the fervor of a bloodhound. He swears he hears the Senju laughing, and speeds up accordingly, incandescent fury lighting his veins, but the Senju speeds up to stay ahead.

The trees blur, and his focus narrows once more, they are headed toward the last clone’s chakra signature, which Madara can only peripherally think of as a stroke of good fortune, the rest of his focus is on trying to overtake Tobirama until the world narrows down to just he and the Senju, extraneous thoughts brushed aside for the void of trying to gain that one more ounce of speed that will let him capture his prey.

He doesn’t notice the first few traps as they cross into the Land of Rice Fields, small things meant more to test his awareness than anything else that he dodges on the reflex of his activated sharingan alone, but when a block of ice the size of a wombat is launched at his face he takes exception to begin another fit of raucous swearing.

He can practically feel the amusement rolling of the snowy Senju, and his spirited cursing evolves into near incoherent screaming instead.

The trees give way to the terraced fields that the Land of Rice Fields is known for and walls of gray rock loom over them as they race over the shallow beds of water spread over the land. Up ahead and to the right Madara spots a section of uncleared land butting right up to a towering stone monolith that curves inward at the base to surround a waterfall running from the top.

It’s as good a place as he’s likely to find to corner the Senju, so he starts herding him in that direction, close enough now to be able to do so, and thank their ancestors for that because any farther away and he wouldn’t have been able to prevent him from climbing right over the tremendous rock. As it is a hail of kunai makes him hesitate for just long enough for Madara to finally catch up to him.

The Senju turns to meet him and the frustrated part of him is vindictively pleased to note the sweat beading at the infuriating man’s brow. They clash first with taijutsu, and Tobirama is not nearly as sneaky and underhanded as Izuna described him as but Madara has known his brother long enough to know that he is prone to melodrama and exaggeration and he makes a further point of vilifying their enemies. What he is, is efficient and pragmatic. There are no flourishes in his style, and he goes for blows that will whittle away at his opponent’s strength and make them hesitate, giving him the edge he needs to land a killing blow.

He is forced to jump back as a jet of water comes at him from the side, and steam fills the air as he meets another with a flame bullet. From there the fight gets more intense, the air is transmuted as steam becomes water and is changed back into steam, lightning jumps between moisture molecules, and clouds begin to darken the sky from the rapid temperature and moisture shifts.

The rush of water, the hiss of fire being doused, the crack of lightning, the clashing of weapons, and the small sounds of exertion are all that ring through the air, wild life and humans alike scattered by the tumultuous noise.

The sounds eventually quiet down until it is silent but for the sound of the near waterfall covering the sounds of heavy breathing coming from the pair on the bank of it’s newly expanded pool. The previously uncleared spot of land is now pockmarked by water filled rents and felled brush, some still smoldering worryingly, and one tree in particular, cracked down the center from a burst of lightning looks like it might flare back into a fire at any moment.

For a moment Tobirama struggles in his place pinned under Madara, and then the Uchiha finds the nape of his neck with his teeth and all his nerves flare all at once like lightning coursing through his veins, and he goes limp with surrender.

Madara waits another moment, just to be sure, then lets go and goes just as boneless on top of him, finally allowed to catch his breath, and there’s a lot of it that he has to catch. Their hunt had covered a lot of ground from the battlefield in Fire, east almost to the coast, north into Hotwater and then north west all the way to the Land of Rice Fields.

Gathering himself up before he decides to just sleep like this, Madara leans up and takes the time now to admire his conquest. He knew that the younger Senju was pretty, lithe lines, sharp edges, and austere beauty to Hashirama’s broad frame and classically handsome features, but looking at him now, silver hair so bright it was nearly white, pale skin flush with exertion, red lines drawing his gaze up to darkly lined eyes with pale lashes and a full pair of lips, knowing that all of it was his to claim was something else entirely.

Red eyes open languidly, gaze something between smug and come hither as they meet Madara’s own, and the entire aggravating hunt flashes through his mind. With a growl Madara dives down to viciously fit his mouth over Tobirama’s and wipe away the smug tilt of his lips, drawing out a muffled grunt. They weren’t going anywhere until he made his new spouse pay for every moment of aggravation he had been subjected to on this hunt!

**Author's Note:**

> I promised to write this for MadaTobi week, so here it is! Or at least here's the beginning.


End file.
